


Infatuations

by MelyndaR



Series: Don't Fear the Fall [6]
Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: F/M, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-05
Updated: 2020-01-05
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:34:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22134871
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MelyndaR/pseuds/MelyndaR
Summary: Naomi had come to Seven because she trusted her to know Icheb better than anyone else did, but now that she was here, she wasn’t sure where to start her line of questioning. She had so many questions, after all.
Relationships: Seven of Nine & Naomi Wildman, Seven of Nine/Other(s), one-sided Icheb/Naomi Wildman
Series: Don't Fear the Fall [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1552054
Kudos: 16





	Infatuations

“Seven?” Naomi asked uncertainly, stepping into the astrometrics bay. “Can I ask you something?”

“Certainly.” Seven of Nine raised her eyebrows as Naomi looked around to make sure they were alone. “How may I be of assistance?”

Naomi had come to Seven because she trusted her to know Icheb better than anyone else did, but now that she was here, she wasn’t sure where to start her line of questioning. She had _so_ many questions, after all.

“Did you know that Q Junior is back again for _another_ visit?”

Hearing the aggravation that Naomi had meant to keep from her tone, Seven glanced away from her charts to Naomi again as she said, “Yes. This is only his second visit since his return to the Q Continuum, correct?”

“Well, yeah… But why is he here?” Naomi slouched against Seven’s console, trying not to give into the urge to sulk childishly.

“I have been given to understand that Q the elder leaves Junior here for safe-keeping whenever the two need time apart.”

That gave Naomi pause. “Wow. That’s sad.”

“Perhaps,” Seven allowed.

At the same time, Naomi felt a surge of hope as she asked, “So, his visits don’t have anything to do with Icheb?”

Now Seven stopped working and turned her full attention to the conversation. It made Naomi nervous; Seven almost never stopped working. “I don’t believe Icheb is the cause of his visits, no, but they are friends. Why?”

“Are they…” Naomi twisted her hands nervously behind her back where Seven couldn’t see them. “More than friends?”

Seven tilted her head, blatantly studying Naomi now. “I don’t know. I haven’t thought to ask.” She paused before asking, “Naomi Wildman, may I offer you a piece of advice?”

Naomi nodded. “Sure.”

“You are young. You have much left to learn. I believe it would be wise for you to focus on… growing as an individual before you attempt to navigate a… romantic partnership.”

Naomi blinked rapidly, trying to figure out where she’d gone wrong, and what had given her away already. Outwardly, she balked, asking, “Who said anything about a—a romantic partnership?”

Seven gave her an unimpressed look, not at all thrown off like Naomi had hoped she would be. “Icheb is an admirable young man, and closest aboard to your own maturation, and in my research of humans, I have been given to understand that in the normal course of your maturation this is the point where you begin to be intrigued by romantic and sexual relationships.”

Now Naomi’s balking was entirely honest as she protested, “I am not interested in a sexual relationship with _anyone_ right now!”

“Good,” Seven replied simply. “There are far better things for a girl such as yourself to be focusing on.”

“Understood.” Naomi took a deep breath, hoping that part of the conversation was over as she hesitantly repeated, “So, you don’t know if Icheb and Q Junior are… a thing?”

Seven’s expression began to flicker with impatience as she answered shortly, “I do not.”

“Do you know… if… Icheb is interested in boys or girls?”

That was apparently all Seven could take of that conversation. “Naomi Wildman,” Seven said sharply, turning back to her work. “If you have something to say to Icheb, I would suggest you say it _to Icheb._ Right now: what class of star is in the center of my viewscreen at the moment?”

Naomi gave her a double take, caught off-guard at the sudden change of topic. “I don’t know.”

“I gave you star charts from long-range sensors three days ago. We’re in those stars now; you should have studied already so you knew the information.”

“I… I’ve been distracted,” Naomi said feebly, knowing she was playing into the Borg’s hand and hating it.

“Clearly. Which is… sad, because you are a very good student. You should endeavor to focus more on your studies and amassing knowledge before you attempt to gain understanding of such… social functions like the one that’s distracting you now.”

Naomi narrowed her eyes at Seven of Nine. “Are you trying to tell me to mind my own business?”

“That would be a correct simplification of _part_ of what I’m trying to tell you, yes.”

Naomi sighed, trying her best to set aside her worries as she repeated, “Understood.” She turned to go.

“And Naomi Wildman?”

Seven’s voice, with the desire to bring Naomi some measure of comfort in her tone, stopped Naomi, compelling her to turn around. “Yes?”

“For whatever it may be worth, in my own experience, infatuations with another that are truly mere infatuations – they fade away.” Seven paused before charging on in a way that, for her, was brave. “And if what you feel doesn’t go away, and grows instead… in my experience, that… works itself out also.”

There was a faint twitch in Seven’s eyebrow, and a tick at the edge of her mouth as she spoke. Someone who didn’t know her as well as Naomi thought she did might’ve not even noticed it.

But Naomi noticed, and she stopped, then turned to face her friend fully. On a hunch, she asked with a wheedling tone, pointed look, and suspicious smile, “ _Seven_ , do you have a romantic and sexual relationship with someone?”

Seven’s gaze began to warn of a line that Naomi was creeping close to, but that didn’t keep a smile from flitting around the edges of her mouth. “Naomi Wildman, mind your own business.”

“Alright, alright.” Naomi took that as the dismissal that it was and left Seven to her work. If nothing else, she reflected as she walked to the turbolift, despite the… Icheb and Junior… issue, she had left Seven with smiles on both of their faces.

At least it appeared that _somebody’s_ romantic relationship was growing aboard _Voyager_ , and Naomi was happy for Seven. Now, if only she had a way to discover who had started a romantic relationship with her friend…


End file.
